Argentina: National inflation steady in March, while Buenos Aires inflation dips
According to the National Statistics Institute (INDEC), national consumer prices rose 2.3% over the previous month in March, slightly below February’s 2.4% month-on-month increase. The result reflected higher prices in all 12 components of the index. In month-on-month terms, prices for education rose 13.8%, equipment and maintenance of the household 4.5%, and clothing and footwear 4.4%. The annual variation in consumer prices reached 25.4% in March, unchanged from February’s print.
National inflation is expected to be 19.7% at the end of 2018, which is up 0.4 percentage points from last month’s forecast. Inflation is projected to reach 13.7% at the end of 2019.
Data compiled by the Statistical Institute of the city of Buenos Aires showed that consumer prices in the city of Buenos Aires dipped from a 2.6% month-on-month increase in February to 2.1% in March. Inflation edged down from 26.3% in February to 25.4% in March.
The inflation data released by the Statistical Institute of the city of Buenos Aires and INDEC are not comparable, as the two index structures are not homologous. This is due to different baskets of goods, samples and data collection methodologies.